This article originally appeared in Pyramid #2

GURPS Bestiary Extras

By Chris McCubbin and Bob Schroeck

Swan Mays

The Swan Mays are an ancient sisterhood of humans with the ability to turn into swans by donning feathered cloaks. They are dedicated to the preservation and defense of the wild places of the world and the innocent folk who live there. Many Swan Mays are warriors, mages or both.

The power of the Swan May is threefold. There is a genetic component - a Swan May must be the daughter of a Swan May. Next, she must be wearing her cloak of feathers. Many of the cloaks are very ancient, passed down from mother to daughter for countless generations. The secret of maintaining, repairing and (presumably) creating the cloaks is a closely-guarded secret of the oldest and most powerful Swan Mays. Finally, there is a moral and cultural part to the Swan May's power. Each Swan May is raised to honor nature and defend the innocent, and if they fail in this duty through cowardice, greed or carelessness, they will lose their powers. (Repentance might be possible, at the GM's option, but it would certainly require a long and dangerous service to regain a lost transformation power.)

Though deadly when their charges are threatened, most of the time Swan Mays are beautiful and merry. It is part of a Swan May's duty to her kind to eventually marry an honorable man and produce a daughter to carry on the legacy. They are greatly sought after as wives, and many of the noblest houses have Swan May blood. But they cannot be bought or coerced to wed. A Swan May marries only at her pleasure, and only for love.

Even in war, Swan Mays usually go unarmored. Their usual gear includes a plain, light shift, a bow and a few arrows or a light spear, and a knife. They do not like to be encumbered with more than can be absorbed in their change.

Swan May Characters
Human Form: All Swan Mays have a gadget-based Were Form advantage, with the enhancement Absorptive Change (No Encumbrance), for a base cost of 11 points. The gadget modifiers for their cloaks of feathers are Awkward, Can Be Stolen by Stealth or Trickery and Unique, for a final modifier of -40%. This makes the final cost of the cloak 7 points. Swan May cloaks are usable only by their owners, but may be transferred from mother to daughter.

Swan Form: The swan template is as follows: ST 6 [-30], DX 12 [20], IQ 4 [50], HT 13 [30]. Advantages are PD +1 [25], DR +1 [3], Appearance: Attractive [5], Penetrating Call [5], Peripheral Vision [15], Striker: Beak (1 hex range) [20] and Winged Flight [30]. Disadvantages are -4 Hit Points [-20], Mute [-25] and No Fine Manipulators [-30]. Swans have Brawling-12 [1], Flight-12 [2] and Swimming-12 [2]. The swan template cost is 3 points. For the were-form of a Swan May, IQ must be brought back up [+50].

Both forms must take Duty (defend the forests, find a worthy husband, raise a daughter to take your place) [-10], and Code of Honor (Respect nature, defend the defenseless) [-10].The base character point total of a Swan May's were-form is 33 points. The final point total of the were-form receives a -40% discount from the gadget modifiers.

Swan May Example: Opal

Opal is a young and frightfully naive Swan May, still in her teens. Her father, a soldier, died before she was born, and her mother was killed by wolves when Opal was 13, so for the last five years she's lived by herself in the wilderness. She's done all right in that time, but the combination of her solitary existence and the lack of paternal guidance have made her a bit less skilled, and a good deal less polished, than is normal for a Swan May of her age. Her lack of human companionship has made her shy and guileless - she has only the vaguest concept of a "lie." However, her long independence also makes her resentful of those who seem to be more accomplished or civilized than herself.

She often flies to the nearest village (some 20 miles from her hut) where she perches on a roof and watches the village girls, with their finery and boyfriends, in envy. A couple of times a year, she comes to town to trade for essentials like salt, or a new garment and sandals. In addition to what she finds for trade, she has a small cache of valuable coins, inherited from her mother, hidden in her home.

She's made a hobby of the study of the wildflowers that grow in the forest. Her other pastime is playing practical jokes on the occasional hunter that ventures into her territory. Some of her pranks have been quite terrifying, and the woods around her home are gaining a reputation as a haunted place.

Opal is a 100-point character. Her DX is shared points between her two forms.

Opal, human form
Pale skinned, age 18, 5'11", 135 lbs., green eyes.

ST: 10 [0]Move/Speed: 6 (6.25)
DX: 12 [shared]Dodge: 6
IQ: 10 [0]Parry: 7
HT: 13 [30]Damage: Thrust: 1d-2; Swing: 1d
Point Total: 65

Advantages
Animal Empathy [5]
Appearance: Beautiful [15]
Combat Reflexes [15]
Swan-feather Cloak (Were Form gadget) [7]

Disadvantages
Code of Honor (see text) [-10]
Duty (see text) [-10]
Impulsiveness [-10]
Jealousy (extra disadvantage, no bonus)
Poverty: Struggling [-10]
Shyness (mild) (extra disadvantage, no bonus)
Truthfulness (extra disadvantage, no bonus)

Skills
Area Knowledge (Home forest and environs)-12 [2], Bow-13 [8], Climbing-12 [2], Knife-13 [2], Naturalist-11 [4], Stealth-12 [2], Survival (Forest)-10 [1], Swimming-12 [1], Tracking-11 [2], Veterinary-13 [1].

Quirks
In awe of village girls
Plays pranks on hunters
Dislikes dogs
Studies wildflowers
Imagines she's a princess

Opal, swan form

ST: 9 [20]Move (land/air): 6/12Speed: 6.25
DX: 12 [shared]Dodge: 7 (13 flying)
IQ: 11 [60]Parry: 7PD/DR: 1/1
HT: 13/6 [0]Damage: Thrust: 1d-2; Swing: 1d-1
Point Total: 15 (25 minus 40% gadget discount)

Advantage
Swan template (3 points, less shared points in DX)

Disadvantages
Code of Honor (see text) [-10]
Duty (see text) [-10]
Impulsiveness [-10]
Poverty: Struggling [-10]
Shyness (mild) (extra disadvantage, no bonus)

Skills
Area Knowledge (Home forest and environs)-12 [2], Brawling-12 [0], Flight-12 [0], Survival (Forest)-14 [8], Swimming-12 [0].

Quirks
In awe of village girls
Plays pranks on hunters
Dislikes dogs

The Arthurian Werewolf

Among the many tales of King Arthur and Camelot, there can be found two references to werewolves. Sir Marrok and Sir Gorlagon, two knights of honor, were both afflicted with lycanthropy. Gorlagon was the victim of a unique magic item with ties to his family lineage, but Marrok was a were more along the usual lines. Through the machinations of his unfaithful wife, Sir Marrok actually found himself trapped in his wolf form for seven years! When he finally was able to return to human shape, he took his revenge upon the woman. Despite this, Sir Marrok was honored with a seat at the Round Table, where he served the king for many years.

GURPS Camelot has a description of werewolves like Sir Marrok, but it is based more on the werewolves of Yrth than the actual legends, which are scarce on details about the condition. The following description is closer to the spirit of the old tales, and may be used in a Camelot campaign instead of the version given in that volume. Arthurian werewolves are ordinary wolves in their were-form, using the wolf template found in GURPS Bestiary, Second Edition, on p. 82, except for their IQ, which is always at least 10, and usually the same as their human form's IQ. They rarely if ever suffer from Split Personality, so they are always in control of their wolf forms. For the same reason, most quirks, mental disadvantages and mental skills from the human form will also be possessed by the were-form. (IQ and mental skills are thus good candidates for shared points.)

Before he can change, an Arthurian werewolf must remove all his clothes. This is an absolute requirement - the were cannot change while dressed! Furthermore, he must hide and protect his clothing carefully, because unless he has the clothing he was wearing before his change to wolf form, he cannot change back! Sir Marrok's wife hid his clothing and forced the knight to remain a wolf for seven years, until he could find his clothes. The werewolf doesn't need to do anything with the clothes, just stand in the same hex with them. They must be reasonably intact - a few holes won't affect the change, but being sliced to ribbons will! Although an Arthurian were cannot change while wearing armor, the armor is not considered part of the clothing that must be present for the change back.

Unlike the traditional werewolf, the Arthurian were does not transmit its shapeshifting ability through its bite. Weredom is more likely to be the result of a curse or some form of penance. The GM should require PC weres to explain how they came to suffer from this. It makes an excellent Secret. Arthurian weres must change at the full moon for an entire night, but can change at will at other times. This is Were Form, along with a -20% limitation Cannot Change to Were-Form While Wearing Clothes, for a cost of 8 points. The clothing requirement for the transformation back makes it an item-based change. The item is generic clothing, with the following modifiers: Not Needed For Change to Were Form +25%, Awkward -10%, Breakable (DR 0, HP 2) -15%, Not Absorbed in Change -15%, Can Be Stolen by Stealth or Trickery -10% and Unique -25% (although clothes are easily replaced and different sets will count as this item at different times, once the change is made only the one set will allow the were to change back!). This is a total -50% modifier; Were Form now costs 4 points, and the wolf-form receives 50% off its final character point total.

Arthurian Werewolf Example: Sir Marrok of Camelot

Sir Marrok is the archetypical Arthurian werewolf. He is a knight of no small ability and a member of the Round Table, but has a mixed reputation because of his unwillingness to hide his were status. As a result of his wife's treachery, Marrok distrusts all women, and is quick to denounce an adulterer. Perhaps for this reason he gravitates to Gawaine's faction at the court, without actually being a member of it; he has certainly heard the rumors of an affair between Lancelot and Guinevere.

He carefully absents himself from Camelot whenever the full moon comes, so as not to cause too much distress at the court. Because of past experiences, he takes an almost paranoid care in protecting his clothing when he changes; sometimes he goes so far as to lock it away in a chest and bury it, hiding the key where only he may find it at the end of his change-time. At other times, he is hesitant, almost reluctant to change. In either form, he is devoted to Arthur and his ideals.

Marrok is a 150-point character, suitable for either a mythic or cinematic Camelot campaign.

Sir Marrok, human form
British male, age 56, 6', 165 lbs., brown hair, brown eyes.

ST: 13 [30]Move/Speed: 5 (5.75)
DX: 12 [20]Dodge: 6Block: 8
IQ: 10 [0]Parry: 8
HT: 11 [10]Damage: Thrust: 1d; Swing: 2d-1
Point Total: 133

Advantages
Combat Reflexes [15]
Companion of the Round Table [15]
Knighthood [20]
Reputation +2: worthy knight (5 points, 1 level free from Companion)
Status 2 (free from Knighthood and Companion)
Wealth: Wealthy [20]
Were Form (See text above for special limitations) [4]

Disadvantages
Chivalric Code of Honor [-15]
Reputation -3: werewolf [-15]
Sense of Duty to crown and country [-10]

Skills
Area Knowledge (England)-13 [4], Broadsword-14 [8], English-11 (0, native tongue), Flail-12 [4], Heraldry-11 [2], Knife-12 [1], Lance-14 [8], Riding (Horse)-14 [8], Savoir-Faire (Britain)-13 (0, default from Status), Savoir-Faire (elsewhere)-11 (0, default from Status), Shield-14 [4].

Quirks
Distrusts women
Changes only when absolutely necessary
Takes extraordinary care in hiding his change-clothes
Dislikes adulterers
Favors Gawaine's faction at court

Sir Marrok, wolf form

ST: 11 [20]Move/Speed: 8 (6.5)
DX: 14 [0]Dodge: 9
IQ: 10 [0]PD/DR: 1/1
HT: 12 [0]Damage: Thrust: 1d-1; Swing: 1d+2
Point Total: 17 (34 points with 50% discount)

Advantage
Wolf template [27]

Disadvantages
Chivalric Code of Honor [-15]
Sense of Duty to Crown and country [-10]

Skills
Area Knowledge (England)-13 [4], Brawling-14 [0], English-11 (0, native tongue), Heraldry-12 [4], Running-12 [0], Stealth-15 (+2 points), Survival (Forest)-11 [4], Tracking-13 (+2 points).

Quirks
Distrusts women
Avoids people if possible
Dislikes adulterers
Favors Gawaine's faction at court

Glider

This is a science-fiction were suitable for use with GURPS Space. The Glider has been genetically engineered to transform from a small human into a creature with bat-like wings, designed to get around quickly in large low-g settlements. Aside from the glider wings, the most important single change between the character's forms is one which does not cost points - normal gravity for the human form is earth normal, but for the were form it's .6 earth normal. The were loses altitude at twice normal speed at .8 to 1 G, and cannot glide at all at greater than 1 G. At his Tech Level (10+) the were will normally have access to pain-killers which will minimize the discomfort of the change without interfering with his ability to function. With the drugs, the character will not cry out or be mentally stunned; the fatiguing effects of the disadvantage remain, however.

The character is envisioned as a member of an experimental police squad, designed for low-g worlds and colony ships. The genetic modifications reduce its DX in human form and leave the glider form short on HT, but in a Space scenario energy weapons and ultra-tech armor make up for these defects.

Because the Glider is not based on any particular animal type, it uses no animal template. Its IQ is bought with shared points between both forms.

The Glider is a 100-point character, suitable for use as a PC, or as a template for a squad of airborne foes.

Glider, humanoid form

ST: 10 [0]Move/Speed: 4 (4.25)
DX: 9 [-10]Dodge: 4
IQ: 12 [Shared]Parry: 5 (6 hand-to-hand)
HT: 10 [0]Damage: Thrust: 1d-2; Swing: 1d
Point Total: 17

Advantages
Acute Vision +2 [4]
G-Experience (see GURPS Space, p. 33) [10]
Legal Enforcement Powers [5]

Disadvantages
Code of Honor: Honest Cop [-10]
Duty to citizens and fellow officers on 12 or less [-10]
Honesty [-10]
Intolerance of dissidents and malcontents (extra disadvantage, no bonus)
Squeamishness, Mild [-10]

Skills
Acrobatics-10 [8], Administration-13 [4], Beam Weapons-12 [2], Diplomacy-12 [4], Electronic Operations (police equipment)-12 [2], First Aid-13 [2], Free Fall-10 [4], Interrogation-12 [2], Judo-9 [4], Karate-9 [4], Law-10 [1], Photography-11 [1], Savoir-Faire-12 [1], Shadowing-14 [4], Short Sword (baton)-10 [4], Streetwise-11 [1], Vacc Suit-11 [2].

Quirks
Sports nut
Acts tough

Glider, were-form

ST: 10 [0]Move (land/gliding): 5/10Speed: 5
DX: 12 [20]Parry: 6 (8 hand-to-hand)Dodge: 5
IQ: 12 [Shared]PD/DR: 1/1
HT: 8 [-15]Damage: Thrust: 1d-2;Swing: 1d
Point Total: 63

Advantages
Acute Vision +2 [4]
G-Experience (see GURPS Space, p. 33) [10]
Gliding [20]
Legal Enforcement Powers [5]
Were Form (Painful Change -30%, Takes 1d Minutes -20%) [5]

Disadvantages
Code of Honor: Honest Cop [-10]
Duty to citizens and fellow officers on 12 or less [-10]
Honesty [-10]
Intolerance of dissidents and malcontents (extra disadvantage, no bonus)
Squeamishness, Mild [-10]

Skills
Acrobatics-13 [8], Administration-13 [4], Beam Weapons-15 [2], Diplomacy-12 [4], Electronic Operations (police equipment)-12 [2], First Aid-13 [2], Flight-13 [4], Free Fall-13 [4], Interrogation-12 [2], Judo-12 [4], Karate-12 [4], Law-10 [1], Photography-11 [1], Savoir-Faire-12 [1], Shadowing-14 [4], Short Sword (baton)-13 [4], Streetwise-11 [1], Vacc Suit-11 [2].

Quirks
Sports nut
Acts tough


Article publication date: August 1, 1993

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