GURPS Shapeshifters

131 Pages·2003·10.307 MB·English

by  Robert M. Schroeck, William H. Stoddard

BByy RRoobbeerrtt MM.. SScchhrrooeecckk  
  AAddddiittiioonnaall mmaatteerriiaall bbyy  
CChhrriiss WW.. MMccCCuubbbbiinn,, DDaavviidd PPuullvveerr,,
SSeeaann PPuunncchh,, SS.. JJoohhnn RRoossss,,
aanndd WWiilllliiaamm HH.. SSttooddddaarrdd
EEddiitteedd bbyy WWiilllliiaamm HH.. SSttooddddaarrdd
IIlllluussttrraatteedd bbyy AAlleexx FFeerrnnaannddeezz
SSyysstteemm DDeessiiggnn SStteevvee JJaacckkssoonn
GGUURRPPSS  
  MMaannaaggiinngg EEddiittoorr AAnnddrreeww HHaacckkaarrdd
LLiinnee EEddiittoorr SSeeaann PPuunncchh
GGUURRPPSS  
  AArrtt DDiirreeccttoorr LLoorreenn KK.. WWiisseemmaann
PPrroodduuccttiioonn AArrttiisstt AAlleexx FFeerrnnaannddeezz
PPrroojjeecctt AAddmmiinniissttrraattoorr MMoonniiqquuee CChhaappmmaann
PPrriinntt BBuuyyeerr MMoonniiccaa SStteepphheennss
EErrrraattaa CCoooorrddiinnaattoorr AAnnddyy VVeettrroommiillee
GGUURRPPSS  
SSaalleess MMaannaaggeerr RRoossss JJeeppssoonn
LLeeaadd PPllaayytteesstteerr::  JJeeffff WWiillssoonn
PPllaayytteesstteerrss::  EEdd BBeecceerrrraa,, CC..JJ.. BBeeiittiinngg,, FFrreeddeerriicckk BBrraacckkiinn,,
BBaarrrryy CCaaddwwggaann,, BBeenneeddiicctt CChhaappmmaann,, JJ..CC.. CCoonnnnoorrss,,
DDrr.. JJoohhnn SS.. EEiicckkeemmeeyyeerr,, LLeeoonnaarrddoo MM.. HHoollsscchhuuhh,, HHuunntteerr JJoohhnnssoonn,,
JJoonnaatthhaann LLaanngg,, JJooee MMuucccchhiieelllloo,, CCuurrttiiss SShheennttoonn,,
aanndd BBrriiaann CC.. SSmmiitthhssoonn..
SSppeecciiaall tthhaannkkss ttoo::  MMaarrkk FFeerrggeerrssoonn,, GGeeooffffrreeyyAA.. LLaannddiiss,, MMiicchhaaeell JJ.. LLuusshh,, ““AArrcchhaannggeell BBeetthh”” MMccCCooyy,, DDaavviidd PPaallmmeerr,, RRiicchhaarrdd PPeerrssoonn,,
MMaarrttiinn RRoossee,, RRaaii SShhiinnsshhii,, JJyyrrkkii VVaallkkaammaa,, aanndd DDaann WWeellllss,, pplluussAAllllyynn YYoonnggee,, ““YYuukkaattaaddoo,,”” aanndd mmaannyy ootthheerrss ffrroomm tthhee FFFFMMLL..
SSppeecciiaall ““NNSSOOHH”” aawwaarrdd ttoo GGaarryy KKlleeppppee..
GGUURRPPSS,, WWaarreehhoouussee 2233,, aanndd tthhee aallll--sseeeeiinngg ppyyrraammiidd aarree rreeggiisstteerreedd ttrraaddeemmaarrkkss ooff SStteevvee JJaacckkssoonn GGaammeess IInnccoorrppoorraatteedd..  PPyyrraammiidd  ,,  SShhaappeesshhiifftteerrss,, aanndd tthhee nnaammeess ooff aallll
pprroodduuccttss ppuubblliisshheedd bbyy SStteevvee JJaacckkssoonn GGaammeess IInnccoorrppoorraatteedd aarree rreeggiisstteerreedd ttrraaddeemmaarrkkss oorr ttrraaddeemmaarrkkss ooff SStteevvee JJaacckkssoonn GGaammeess IInnccoorrppoorraatteedd,, oorr uusseedd uunnddeerr lliicceennssee..
GGUURRPPSS SShhaappeesshhiifftteerrss  iiss ccooppyyrriigghhtt ©© 22000033 bbyy SStteevvee JJaacckkssoonn GGaammeess IInnccoorrppoorraatteedd.. AAllll rriigghhttss rreesseerrvveedd.. PPrriinntteedd iinn tthhee UUSSAA..
TThhee ssccaannnniinngg,, uuppllooaaddiinngg,, aanndd ddiissttrriibbuuttiioonn ooff tthhiiss bbooookk vviiaa tthhee IInntteerrnneett oorr vviiaa aannyy ootthheerr mmeeaannss wwiitthhoouutt tthhee ppeerrmmiissssiioonn ooff tthhee ppuubblliisshheerr iiss iilllleeggaall,,
aanndd ppuunniisshhaabbllee bbyy llaaww.. PPlleeaassee ppuurrcchhaassee oonnllyy aauutthhoorriizzeedd eelleeccttrroonniicc eeddiittiioonnss,, aanndd ddoo nnoott ppaarrttiicciippaattee iinn oorr eennccoouurraaggee tthhee eelleeccttrroonniicc ppiirraaccyy ooff ccooppyyrriigghhtteedd mmaatteerriiaallss..
YYoouurr ssuuppppoorrtt ooff tthhee aauutthhoorr’’ss rriigghhttss iiss aapppprreecciiaatteedd..
IISSBBNN11 --5555663344--445522--XX 11 22 33 44 55 66 77 88 99 11 00
SSTTEEVVEE JJAACCKKSSOONN    GGAAMMEESS
C
  O N T E N T S
I NTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Skin-Changers and Other ETHOMORPH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Shamanic Manifestations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
ABOUT THE AUTHOR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Shapes of the Gods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Other Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87 
1. TH  E HISTORY AND Modern Shamans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 Variations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Independent Shapechangers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49  James William Dennison/The Hun . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
 M YTHOLOGY OF THE
Hidden Subcultures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 SHAPESHIFTING CURSES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
SHAPESHIFTER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Were-Forms as Punishments from the Gods . . . . 50  Instructional Curses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90
PREHISTORIC SHAPESHIFTERS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Shifting Drugs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 Sturmbannführer Werner Pfrommer  . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Shamans and Hunters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 DETECTING AND THWARTING SHAPECHANGERS . . . . . . . 51
CLASSICAL SHAPESHIFTERS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Anticipation and Suspicion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Egypt and Mesopotamia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Tactics and Countermeasures –
Europe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Finding the Infiltrator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
St. Patrick and His Werewolves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6  A Sample Shapechanger Race . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Elsewhere . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Cures for Shapechangers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
THE MEDIEVAL AND RENAISSANCE SHAPECHANGER . . . . . 7  Moly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
 Historical Were: Ann of Meremoisa . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Vulnerabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Wolf vs. Werewolf . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Knowing Your Own . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 BENANDANTI – THE WITCHHUNTER
Asia and the Pacific . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 PREJUDICE AND PRIDE: LIONS OF THE PURE . . . . . . . . . . 56 WEREWOLVES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Psychology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Africa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Chanarkesh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Ecology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
The Americas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8  Adapting the Setting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
The Werewolf of Anspach . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 The Glinizi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
Politics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
 Historical Were: Susanna Martin, The Creation of the Jayagat Tendrab . . . . . . . . . . 59
In the Campaign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
the Werecat of Salem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 The Vows of the Jayagat  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
THE MODERN ERA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Player Characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 Other Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96
Spirituality and Sorcery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Ultimate Outcome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61  Benandanti in GURPS In Nomine . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Popular Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
 Day of the Dolphin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 4. . . . OF  A LL SHAPES Variations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
“REAL” LYCANTHROPY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12  AND SIZES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 Carlo Ravelli . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
KITSUNE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
2. SHAPESHIFTING . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 DOPPELGÄNGER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63 Psychology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Psychology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63
Kitsune Magic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
PARADIGMS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Ecology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Ecology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Spells and Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15  Doppelgänger Names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 Fox-Spirit Possession . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
BUILDING A SHAPESHIFTER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
The Template . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Politics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
 Earning and Granting Tails . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
 Animal Template: Wolf  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 In the Campaign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Kitsune Names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
Building a Morph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Other Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 Other Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Building a Were . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Politics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
You Turn Into WHAT? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Sample Character  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 In the Campaign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
The Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 THE ENYYN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 Character . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
ADVANTAGES, DISADVANTAGES, AND SKILLS . . . . . . . . . 20 Psychology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Variations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
The Were-Creatures of  GURPS Compendium I  . . 22 Ecology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
 Mitsuki Gizensha . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
New Disadvantage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
“MAVERICK” MULTIFORM BIODROID . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
 Revealing Traits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Politics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Psychology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
New Enhancements and  Enyyna Names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 In the Campaign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Limitations for Shifters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 In the Campaign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
 Names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Optional Enhancement  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 Other Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 Other Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Searching for a Cure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
 Lunar Changes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Sample Character  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71  Rockhound  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
 How to Become a Were . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 THE HAWKSHAW BIOROID . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72 SELKIES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Template Reassignment  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 The Typical Hawkshaw Skill Set  . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72 The Skinchanger Archetype . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
 Alternate Projecting Weres . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Psychology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Psychology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
True Astral Were-Forms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34  Hawkshaw Names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 Summoning a Selkie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
“Once Only” Shifting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 Ecology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Ecology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Shifters and Mana . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 In the Campaign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
VARIETIES AND FLAVORS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Selkie Names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Curses and Enchantments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Other Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74 Politics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
What Makes It a Curse? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Model Variations and
In the Campaign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Undead and Shapeshifting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Competitors’ Knock-Offs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Selkie Characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Shapeshifting Races . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 Sample Character  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76 Variations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111
Vessels and  GURPS In Nomine . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 THE METAMORPHIC INVADER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77  Moira Seabourne . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Hengeyokai – Reverse Weres . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 Psychology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
JAGUAR WARRIORS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Shapeshifting and Childbearing . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 Ecology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Psychology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Weremachines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40  Names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80 Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Sample Weremachine Character  . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 Culture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Politics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
“Scientific” Shifting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 Politics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
In the Campaign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
“What DoYou Mean,You Ate While In the Campaign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
 IxokMun . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
You Were a Mouse?” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 Characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
THE SHAMAN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Psionics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 Variations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
In the Campaign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Shifter Supers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 Other Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81 Characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Item-Based Shifting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
Variations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118
Shapeshifting and the Absorb Super Skills . . . . . 44 5. I AM THE MOON ’S
 Misuun Kagitaka, Shaman of the People . . . . . . 119
RITUAL MAGIC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 I NDENTURED SERVANT  . . . . . . . . . 82
The Path of Form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 THE CINEMATIC “MONSTER” WEREWOLF . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 GLOSSARY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
3. C AMPAIGNS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 Psychology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Ecology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84 BIBLIOGRAPHY  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
SHAPECHANGERS IN SOCIETY AND RELIGION . . . . . . . . . 48 In the Campaign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Privilege and Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Characters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84 I NDEX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
 David Henry Heresford . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
2  C O N T E N T S
I
  N T R O D U C T I O N
 Approach thou like the rugged Russian bear,
 About 
The arm’d rhinoceros, or the Hyrcan tiger;  GURPS 
Take any shape but that, and my firm nerves
Shall never tremble. Steve Jackson Games is committed to full support
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addressed,stampedenvelope(SASE)anytimeyouwrite
Amongthemostancientofmythsisthatoftheshapeshifter,theskin-
us! Resources include:
changer, the were-creature. And such creatures are not found only in
Pyramid  (www.sjgames.com/pyramid/ ). Our
myth and folklore; shapechangers of all descriptions appear throughout
online magazine includes new GURPS rules and arti-
literature, from the oldest of legends to the latest science fiction. While
cles. It also covers Dungeons and Dragons, Traveller,
some change at will from form to form, others are less World of Darkness, Call of Cthulhu, and many more
lucky, often living their lives at the mercy of  topgames–andotherSteveJacksonGamesreleaseslike
their supposed gift.  In Nomine, Illuminati, Car Wars, Toon, Ogre Minia-
This book is the result of several  tures,andmore.Pyramid subscribersalsohaveaccessto
playtest files online!
yearsofthought,debate,anddesign
 New supplements and adventures. GURPS contin-
centering on the were-creature
ues to grow, and we’ll be happy to let you know what’s
creation rules found in GURPS new. For a current catalog, send us a legal-sized or
 Bestiary,   Second Edition . 9” 12” SASE – please use two stamps! – or just visit
×
While those earlier rules www.warehouse23.com.
worked, many players felt  Errata. Everyone makes mistakes, including us –
but we do our best to fix our errors. Up-to-date errata
that they were needlessly
sheets for all GURPS releases, including this book, are
complicated. This edi-
available on our website – see below.
tion is an effort to stream-
Gamer input. We value your comments, for new
lineandsimplifytheprocess,
products as well as updated printings of existing titles!
while offering new options.  Internet. Visit us on the World Wide Web at
Also, the original GURPS www.sjgames.com for errata, updates, Q&A, and much
 Bestiary rules leaned heavily more.  GURPS  has its own Usenet group, too:
rec.games.frp.gurps.
toward animal-form characters
GURPSnet.Thise-maillisthostsmuchoftheonline
built for fantasy games. While
discussionof GURPS.Tojoin,pointyourwebbrowserto
this was certainly appropriate,
www.sjgames.com/mailman/listinfo/gurpsnet-l/ .
shapeshifters are far from specific to
The   GURPS Shapeshifters   web page is at
that genre, as any fan of  X-Files, X-Men, or Japanese popular culture can www.sjgames.com/gurps/books/shapeshifters/ .
tell you. A deliberate effort was made with this book to show more than
 just the expected  shifters.
Page References
Grabyourcharactersheetsandyourcalculators–it’stimetochange.
Rules and statistics in this book are specifically for
 About the Author
the GURPS Basic Set, Third Edition. Any page refer-
ence that begins with a B refers to the GURPS Basic Set
Robert M. Schroeck got into the shapeshifter business quite by acci- – e.g., p. B102 means p. 102 of the GURPS Basic Set,
Third Edition. Page references that begin with CI indi-
dent, through superhero roleplaying. He has handled shapeshifting beast-
cate GURPS Compendium I. Other references are A to
ies in three other GURPS books: GURPS Supers Adventures, GURPS
GURPS Aliens, BE to GURPS Bestiary , Third Edition,
 Bestiary, Second Edition , and GURPS Werewolf: The Apocalypse. His BIO to GURPS Bio-Tech, CAto GURPS Camelot, G to
other past efforts in GURPS include GURPS International Super GURPS Grimoire, H to GURPS Horror, IN to GURPS
Teams, GURPS Camelot, GURPS Robin Hood, GURPS IST Kingston,  In Nomine, J to GURPS Japan, M to GURPS Magic,
GURPSY2K, and GURPS Mage: TheAscension. He has contributed to MA to GURPS Martial Arts, MI to GURPS Magic
and edited several In Nominebooks. Bob isalsoknown fortheinfamous  Items 1, RO to GURPS Robots, RU to GURPS Russia,
SPItoGURPSSpirits,STMtoGURPSSteampunk,SU
multigenre GURPS tournaments he has created or co-created for various
to GURPS Supers, UN to GURPS Undead,  VE to
game conventions, including the first official GURPS World Multigenre
GURPS Vehicles, and VO to GURPS Voodoo. The
Championship at Dexcon 6.
abbreviation for this book is SH. For a full list of abbre-
A gamer since the late 1970s, Bob collects anime, books, outdated viations, see p. CI181 or the updated web list at
software, and dust. He and his wife Peggy (herself a sometime GURPS www.sjgames.com/gurps/abbrevs.html .
writer, although she’ll deny it if asked) live in Somerset, NJ.
I N T R O D U C T I O N  3
C 1
  H A P T E R  
  TT HH
HH EE II SS TT OO RR YY AA NN DD
 T H
H E I S T O R Y A N D
  MM
  YY TT HH OO LL OO GG YY OO FF TT HH EE
 M
Y T H O L O G Y O F T H E
SS
 Nothingintheentireuniverseever 
HH AA PP EE SS HH II FFTTEERR  
S
  H A P E S H I F T E R   perishes, believe me, but things vary,
and adopt a new form. The phrase
“being born” is used for beginning to
be something different from what one
was before, while “dying” means
ceasing to be the same. Though this
thing may pass into that, and that into
this, yet the sum of things remains
unchanged.
 – Ovid, Metamorphoses
It is impossible to point at any one civilization or myth of the Earth that does not have a shapeshifter myth; mankind
and say, “There! That’s where we get shapeshifters from!” has ever been fascinated and/or repulsed by the difference
The myth of the shapechanger or shapestealer is one of the between humans and beasts – and the idea that this difference
oldestinhumanhistory.Thereisalmostnocultureontheface can be transcended.
P S
REHISTORIC HAPESHIFTERS
The origin of the shapeshifter in myth and legend traces “virtues” and becoming better hunters. Cave paintings dating
back to the very beginning of humanity itself. Deep below the back to 6000 B.C. and earlier show hunters wearing the pelts
Pyrenees, there is a cave in which can be found a Paleolith- ofleopardsandotherpredatorybeastsastheymaketheirkills.
ic wall painting known as the “Sorcerer of Trois Fréres.” It If studies of surviving primitive peoples are any indication, a
depicts a figure of mixed animal and human traits. While he conceit or actual belief that (under the right conditions) they
stands upright, his posture threatens to turn into the four- were able to take the actual forms of their “totems” soon fol-
footed gait of the bear, whose paws he possesses. Proudly lowed.
antlered, with a wolf’s tail and other animal features, he Theshamanwasthemediatorbetweenmenandbothani-
stands on the threshold between human and not-human, a fig- mals and spirits. The spirits of animals exploited or killed
ure of shamanic power acquired by becoming the animals were of concern to early man; the shaman’s duties included
who are the source of that power. not only placating these spirits after a kill, but getting their
permission and cooperation beforehand. Because these spirits
Shamans and Hunters
dwelt in the land of the dead, the shaman’s authority stemmed
from his ability to control his own spirit sufficiently to enter
The assumption of an intimate connection between man the land of the dead as an ersatz animal, borrowing an ani-
and beast is perhaps the primary characteristic of primitive mal’s spiritual power to accomplish his goals.
thought. It manifests most commonly in the rituals of the hunt Here are the ultimate ancestors of the shapeshifter: the
and of shamanism, as a kind of sympathetic magic. hunters who sought to take on a predator’s skills, and the
Primitive hunters sought to assume the qualities of pred- shaman who masqueraded as the spirit of an animal. Almost
ators whose prowess they envied. To this end they would don every shapechanger that has since appeared in any culture
the skins of such animals with the intent of gaining their owes something to these two fundamental sources.
C  S
LASSICAL HAPESHIFTERS
By the start of recorded history, most of humanity had wearer – a “skin-changing” ritual that owed much to more
replacedshamanismwithmoreorganizedreligions,eachwith primitive rites.
its own body of folklore and myth. Within this lore, faint
Europe
memories of the older ways of the hunter and shaman
remained; mutating and changing as cultures evolved, they
became the basis for new stories and added color to old ones. It was the ancient Greeks, though, who took their half-
At the same time, certain cults preserved aspects of the forgottenmemoriesoftheseprehistorictraditions,filteredand
ancient ways more accurately.Afew such even survived into revised them, and formed from them a multitude of theri-
modern times. omorphs. From the myth of Lycaeon (itself probably a dis-
torted memory of a wolf-brotherhood of hunters), through the
Egypt and Mesopotamia
isle of Circe in Homer’s Odyssey and Euanthes’ story of 
Antaeus (cited by Pliny), to the Roman poet Ovid’s definitive
Theearliestliterarytracesoftheshapeshifterarefoundin  Metamorphoses, classical myth and literature are filled with
Mesopotamia and date from approximately 2000 B.C. The stories of men changed to animals, none more frequently than
 Epic of Gilgamesh includes a short passage in which the god- the wolf.
dessIshtarturnsashepherdintoawolf.Thisisthefirstknown The vast majority of the Grecian transformations were
trace of the creature that millennia later would become the involuntary – they happened either as punishment or at the
archetypal shapeshifter: the werewolf. whim of some divine agency. It is not until the Roman poet
At the same time, the Egyptians performed rituals that Virgil’s eighth Eclogue, written approximately 30 B.C., that
drew upon ancient shamanistic traditions. These rituals the voluntary shapeshifter reappears from the mists of memo-
expanded the Egyptian fascination with cats to include some ry.Inthattale,thewarlockMoeriscanturnhimselfintoawolf 
distinctly were-like beliefs. In a process called “the passage atwill,amongallhisnecromanticandotherpowers.Whilehis
through the skin,” for example, a panther tail was worn about sympathetic and indeed benevolent characterization is a com-
the waist or knotted about the neck with the intent of drawing plex precursor of the Baltic lands’werewolf traditions, he also
on the power of the animal to help protect and strengthen the presaged other, less morally complicated images.
 THE HISTORY AND MYTHOLOGY OF THE SHAPESHIFTER   5
Were-creatures weren’t the only shapeshifters in Greek St. Patrick and
myth. The Olympians were frequently shown to have morph-
His Werewolves
ing talents, and none more so than the sea-god Proteus. Son
of Poseidon and known also for his gift of prophecy, Proteus
defined the polymorphic shapeshifter to the point that his According to Kongs Skuggsjo (also known as Speculum
name is synonymous with the ability to change one’s form  Regale), a Norse account from 1250, Patricius (better known as
Saint Patrick) was subjected to considerable harassment during the
without limit. The Odyssey describes his taking the shapes of 
mission he undertook to then-pagan Ireland. The text says that “one
animals, of trees, and even of running water. Ovid offhanded-
greatrace”(mostlikelyoneofthelargerCeltictribes)wasquitehos-
ly mentions that he could also become a rock or a flame. The
tile to him, even trying to injure or kill him. He met with the men of 
Latin mythography Fabulae by Hyginus mentions that it was this “race” in a great assembly, but when he spoke they heckled him
necessary to bind him with a chain so that he could be recog- by howling like wolves. Then, as the account says:
nized in all his myriad forms. Although there was apparently . . . he became very wroth, and prayed God that he might 
no limit to what he could become, bears, boars, snakes, and avenge it on them by some judgment, that their descendants might 
 forever remember their disobedience. And great punishment and fit 
lions were among his favored shapes, and Nonnos’ epic
and very wonderful has since befallen their descendants; for it is
 Dionysiaca seems to hint that he might have had a hand in the
said that all men who come from that race are always wolves at a
origins of the selkies (pp. 108-112).
certain time, and run into the woods and take food like wolves; and 
Not all classical shifters were relegated to tales of the
they are worse in this that they have human reason, for all their cun-
gods; some were part of day-to-day life. Around 500 B.C. ning, and such desire and greed for men as for other creatures. And 
HerodotusrecordedthattheScythiansbelievedthattheNeuri, it is said that some become so every seventh year, and are men dur-
a neighboring tribe, were werewolves, forced to spend part of  ing the interval.And some have it so long that they have seven years
at once, and are never so afterwards.
their lives as animals.And a hundred years later, according to
the second-century writer Pausanias, an Arcadian boxer
namedDamarchuswhohadspentnineyearsasawolfwonan
Olympic victory.
Further west, the Druids’mystique included a reputation
for taking animal forms. Celtic lore also included the fáelad ,
families who numbered lycanthropy among their legacies.
The Fourth Branch of the Mabinogion tells how the magician
Gwydion turned Blodeuwedd into an owl.
To the north, the shamanistic traditions were re-emerging
in the sources of the Old Norse myths In the Völsunga Saga,
Sigmundr and his son Sinfjolti steal the wolf-skins which
belong to two “spell-bound skin-changers” to change into
wolves themselves so that they can go berserking in the
woods. And outside of the sagas, the warriors known as
ulfhethnar  and beserkir  (singular berserkr ; see p. 49),
like their prehistoric forebears, wore the skins of 
wolves and bears, respectively, to draw to themselves
the animal’s prowess in battle.
Elsewhere
In the Americas, shifters took other
forms, familiar to the native peoples. The
Yaki, Tarahumara, and Seris Indians worried
in the dark of night about the nahuales, war-
locksgiventotakingtheformofblack-furred
coyotes. Their cave drawings clearly depict
the creatures that received their attention.The
nahual was both the magician and the magic,
the primitive spirit possessed by each person;
if a man could come to know it, they believed,
he could practice magic and cure the sick –
once again, a holdover of shamanistic beliefs.
Their cousins to the south, the Aztecs,
didn’t fear the nahuales – they venerated them.
The empire protected sorcerers as sacred to Tez-
catlipoca, the god of war and sacrifice.
 6 THE HISTORY AND MYTHOLOGY OF THE SHAPESHIFTER
T M
HE EDIEVAL AND
R  S
ENAISSANCE HAPECHANGER 
As Europe slowly recovered from the fall of the Roman there through most of the world). By the 1400s, both the
Empire, the classical shapeshifter eventually reconverged Church and the law in Europe – specifically, in medieval
with older traditions native to the once-conquered territories. France – had conflated the state of being a werewolf with a
Inparallelwiththegrowthofnewculturesinthoselands,new variety of mental disorders that often drove their victims to
myths formed, often far different from those that spawned cannibalism.
them. The definitive instance of this practice is the so-called
Scandinavia spawned the werebear, who was usually a “Werewolf of Chalons,” who was discovered in circum-
heroic figure. Bothvar Biarki, one of the first werebears, stances so bloody and grotesque that the Paris court that con-
appears in Hrólfs saga Kraka. This tradition was, along with victed him on December 14, 1598, suppressed almost all
much else, shared with Germanic mythology. (Later, were- documentsbearingonthecase.Theaccusationoflycanthropy
bears would migrate into modern fantasy gaming via the leveled upon him was based entirely on the evidence of his
works of J. R. R. Tolkien.) Scandinavian folklore also had its murders. In this and other trials, the evidence of cannibalism
share of evil shifters; magpies, for example, were believed to alone was in almost every case sufficient ground to accuse
be sorcerers flying to unholy gatherings. and convict the individual of lycanthropy as well, even if no
Legends grew in Scotland of humans who could change “witness” to his transformation or depredations in animal
into seals, and seals who could change into humans – selchies form could be found or manufactured. The punishment for
or selkies. Their origin was varied: most commonly, the both crimes was always the same – death by one unpleasant
selkies were seen as a separate race, related to but separate means or another.
from mankind, but ordinary humans could become selkies as This is something to keep in mind, especially in a cam-
well, either because of a curse or by working magic upon paign set in medieval Europe. A particularly evil or vicious
themselves. In the most extreme tales, they were seen as Enemy may well decide to rid himself of one or more pests
angels fallen from grace, but not so far as to become demons. (read “adventurers”) by arranging for them to appear to be
In France was born the man-wolf. Unlike most other cannibals. Escaping such a charge, especially with properly
European weres, the creatures that would be called loup- bribed witnesses to back it up, would be all but impossible.
garou were diabolical, driven by cannibalistic urges and the The question of  why medieval France had so many can-
desire to do harm to innocent folk. (See box, p. 8.) The Inqui- nibals (or werewolves, depending on the frame of reference)
sition seized upon the loup-garou, with its irredeemably evil that such a precedent and protocol for dealing with them had
nature and sorcerous roots, as the orthodox definition of the developed is left up to the reader. (And to the GM, to decide
werewolf of medieval Catholic belief.Along with witches – for the edification – or detriment – of his players.)
with which they were usually conflated – werewolves In contrast, the werewolves of the Baltic
wereatthetopoftheChurch’slistofactiveworksof  and Russian (and some near-Mediterranean)
the Devil on Earth. So firmly was this anchored in areas were far more benevolent, and occa-
the medieval Catholic mindset that doubting or sionally even comical. Typical of these
denying the existence of werewolves was con- weretheBenandanti(seepp.93-98)and
sidered heresy and, in some areas, grounds for similar descendants of ancient fertility
an Inquisitorial visit. As a result of its subse- cults. These self-proclaimed were-
quent distribution throughout Europe, the wolves saw themselves taking animal
French cannibal werewolf became the dominant form “in the service of God.” Other,
shifter stereotype in Western culture (and from more folkloric, werewolves prowled vil-
lages in search of beer and liquor or played
Historical Were: pranks on the unwary.
The classic bipedal “wolf-man,” far from
 Ann of Meremoisa being an invention of low-budget cinema, dates from
this period and is an element of both French and Baltic
According to “Estonia I: Werewolves and Poisoners,” by Maia medieval were lore. Naturally, the details differed. The Baltic
Madar(achapterinBengtAnkarlooandGustavHenningsen’s Early werewolf was an ordinary wolf that walked on its hind legs,
 Modern European Witchcraft ), in a 1623 trial in Estonia the defen- while the Gallic variety was closer to the cinematic half-man.
dant, known only as “Ann,” testified to a four-year career as a were-
At the same time, other legends were appearing. In Ger-
wolf, although the extent of her depredations was limited to one
many there arose the tale of the doppelgänger , the evil twin
horse and several small animals.Awolfskin, which she kept hidden
whose appearance foretold evil to come.And theAlpine cul-
under a stone in a field, was required for her change.
tures had their morphing goblins.
 THE HISTORY AND MYTHOLOGY OF THE SHAPESHIFTER   7