D A R K L Y

Werewolves have long been considered the scourge of the wizarding world; due to their immense physical strength and lack of humanity in wolf form, they've caused considerable damage over the centuries and killed countless witches and wizards who attempted to stop them. Hunting werewolves was very much in vogue until the creation of the Magical Beast & Being Code of Conduct and has persisted illegally into present times. Werewolves may be bitten or born. Surviving a werewolf bite is no small feat--werewolf injuries, even just scratches, produce high fevers and hallucinations, and have a high risk of infection that will prove lethal without proper medical treatment. And as unpleasant as being bitten is, those who survive transmission must endure transformation at the next full moon: a process that involves rending flesh and breaking bones until a full wolf form is achieved. (Werewolves do not appear as a half human/half wolf hybrid--they appear as wolves, albeit slightly larger.) Because of the intense stress of the experience, a werewolf's life span is considerably shorter than the average wizard's. The creation of the Wolfsbane potion has resolved one of the biggest hurdles in werewolf/wizard integration, as it allows werewolves to retain their human consciousness in wolf form. However, as the potion is created from a substance that is literally poisonous to werewolves--hensbane--its side effects are numerous and unpleasant. Weres taking the potion will find themselves sluggish as the full moon approaches, and may experience some of the fever and hallucinations that accompanied their infection. Taking more than the recommended dose of Wolfsbane may prove lethal. 

BASICS ORIGIN WESTERN EUROPE LIFESPAN SHORT: 70-90 YRS STRENGTHS HEIGHTENED SENSES, STRENGTH, WOLF FORM WEAKNESSES TRANSFORMATION SICKNESS

CULTURE Werewolves are pack creatures by nature and more prone to violence when transforming alone. Packs vary in size and may be as small as two wolves. Most packs will have one wolf in a leader role, and some may have more of a hierarchy than others--because lycanthropy is hereditary, some packs have existed since the Middle Ages, though most long-standing werewolf bloodlines have been hunted to extinction over time. Due to the strict regulations the Ministry has imposed on werewolves, many find the idea of registering offensive. These "rogue" packs may or may not still choose to take Wolfsbane, though if they wish to, they have to acquire it on the black market, as it's a controlled substance. Registered wolves are enrolled in Ministry-affiliated packs, which exist in every city. Most of these packs only registered when Wolfsbane was first announced and were not aware that the Ministry planned to assign new weres to their ranks. Packs are a pretty private thing--as werewolves are so hated, many are slow to trust outsiders--and many of these Ministry packs do not appreciate being assigned newcomers who may not have as much control over their condition as older weres with more experience. Prior to the invention of Wolfsbane, the creation of new weres was an unfortunate accident. Because they lacked humanity in their wolf form, werewolves wouldn't recall the damage they'd done, except possibly in dreams. When a new werewolf was discovered, they'd typically find themselves welcomed into the pack of their creator, recognized by scent. Now that weres have awareness in their wolf form, however, the creation of new wolves is strongly frowned upon, and rather than welcoming the newly-turned were, most packs will exile whoever turned him. At least in Ministry-affiliated packs: unaffiliated packs' policies may differ. 

PERCEPTION Prior to the mid-17th-Century adoption of the Magical Beast and Being Code of Conduct, werewolf pelts were a prized and legal commodity. Though the Code ended the practice of hunting magical creatures for sport, the underlying sentiment--viewing werewolves as more animal than person--remained: when a werewolf transforms, he loses his humanity, and many believe that it can't be regained by turning back (which is false--bloodlust accompanies transformation, but it does not persist in human form: a werewolf in their human form is no more prone to murder than anyone else). The Wolfsbane potion has soothed some anti-werewolf sentiment, but they largely remain feared. Even among other creatures, the werewolf is unpopular. Though werewolves have no natural antipathy towards vampires, their strength means that they're one of the few things that can kill a mature vampire, and their bite may severely weaken one. It's often said that the only defense against a werewolf is a killing curse. Consequently, most werewolves closely guard their status.