Caerns
There are places of power that the Garou recognize as sacred to Gaia all around the world - in secret places in the wilderness, hidden in city alleyways and in national parks, high atop skyscrapers, deep within caves, at the intersection of ley lines. These spaces are called caerns, for originally shrines at these places were dedicated to the honored dead of the Garou. By tapping into the power of Gaia at these caerns, Garou can travel between them, even across vast distances using Moon Bridges. Garou can also use caerns as "lightning rods" to summon powerful spirits or evoke awesome mystical energies. Each caern is typically occupied by (and dedicated to) a particular spirit, who may be the totem spirit of a tribe in the sept. The caern spirit is the personification of the power of the caern.Much to the Garou's chagrin, other beings know of these sites. Magicians will rape them for their energy, the fey will use them in strange ways, and minions of the Wyrm will corrupt the powers of Gaia to evil use. Garou guard the caerns closely, as well as the land around the caern, which is known as the bawn. A well-kept bawn shows respect for Gaia and the spirits, and is a sign of a strong caern.
Garou and their Kin will work long and hard to ensure that they maintain control of the bawn and the caern itself, despite incursions from humans seeking more land to cut wood, mine, put up an apartment complex or tear down an historic building to make it a parking lot.Caerns are integral to Garou culture, serving as a central gathering point for all Garou in the area. They serve as sites of worship, meeting areas, and the final resting places of Garou. Even the Garou's physical and mental health are affected by the proximity of caerns.Without the mystic energy of the sacred spots to unite their disparate natures, werewolves may well sicken and die, or go insane.Each Garou-held caern is guarded by a sept, a collection of Garou who take and hold the caern against the Wyrm. Some caerns may hold more than one sept, while some large septs will control more than one caern.
A sept may be entirely composed of Garou from a single tribe, those in these times it is more common to find a number of tribes in the sept.Each caern has a traditional set of offices held by Garou in the caern.These are:Warder and GuardiansThe Warder is the Garou who is in charge of protecting the caern and bawn. Under her are Guardians, who aid the Warder with caern security. The Warder has final say in matters concerning the safety of the caern. The Warder cannot call war parties, but does dictate who must stay and protect the caern. The Warder has the authority to bar others from the caern, and can "close the caern" in times of danger.Master of the RiteThe Master of the Rite has authority over all rites at a caern.
All Garou must have permission from the Master of the Rite before a rite is performed at the caern's center, though rites may be performed in the bawn without permission so long as the Rite does not draw attention to or cause potential harm to the caern. The Master of the Rite is typically a Theurge.GatekeeperThe Gatekeeper is the opener and closer of the Moon Bridge, and is in charge of all Moon Bridge travel too and from he caern. It is the Gatekeeper who decides whether a Moon Bridge is opened to another caern. While in this office she holds the Pathstone, a fetish that allows the Gatekeeper to control the Moon Bridge. The Gatekeeper is typically an Umbral Navigator, and is often appointed by the Master of the Rite since the position is more of a duty than a role.
Rites
Through rituals and celebrations, Garou weave the social, emotional and religious fabric connecting Garou to Garou, pack to pack, and tribe to tribe. When Silver Fang meets Black Fury or Stargazer meets Glass Walker, the rites of their ancestors allow common ground where all know how to tread. Many a meeting between Garou of differing tribes and packs has been saved from devolving into mere dominance games or worse by the use of a Rite of Contrition to ease communication.Rites have both religious and magical connotations, and serve both social and mystical purposes. Most rites can be enacted either in the Umbra or the mundane world. There are various categories of rites: Caern, Accord, Death, Mystic, Punishment, Renown, Seasonal, Minor and Tribal. A Garou is free to learn any type of rite so long as she can find someone to teach it to her, though her auspice affects what rites she is expected to learn.
The Theurges are the most active, learning most all of the rites. The Philodox traditionally learn Rites of Accord and Punishment, while the Galliards will sometimes lead Rites of Death and Renown. Should a Garou wish to perform a rite in the caern itself, the Garou should gain the permission of the Master of the Rite.Rites of Accord
The Theurges or Philodox typically perform these rites.
Rite of Cleansing - This rite purifies a person, place or object, removing the taint of the Wyrm from the place. This rite cannot remove corruption by the Wyrm.
Rite of Contrition - This rite is a form of apology; it is often used to prevent the enmity of spirits or Garou whom an individual has annoyed, or to prevent war between Septs or Tribes.
Rite of Renunciation - In this very rarely used rite, a Garou rejects the auspice under which he was born and chooses a new Auspice. Most Garou view one of these "Shifting Moons" with suspicion, Shadow Lords and Silver Fangs in particular see this rite as a grave insult to Luna.
Rites of the Caern
The Theurges typically perform these rites.
Moot Rite - This rite recharges the caern with Gnosis and must be performed at least once a month in order to keep a caern consecrated to Gaia.
Rite of the Opened Caern - Each caern has a specific power associated with it. By use of this rite, a Garou may tap into the power and use it herself.
The Badger's Burrow - This rite allows the guardians of the caern to perceive what happens within different areas of the caern, a mystical form of remote sensing.
Rite of the Opened Bridge - This rite creates a Moon Bridge, a shimmering portal serving as a mystical means of transportation between two caerns, allowing Garou to traverse distances in 1/1000th the normal time required. The Moon Bridge is opened by a Pathstone, which is held by the Gatekeeper.
Rite of the Shrouded Glen - This rite causes an area within the Umbra to become invisible, so it cannot be seen from any other area of the Umbra.
Rite of Caern Building - This powerful rite creates a caern. Only the most powerful and wise mystics dare lead such an undertaking, and many Garou must channel their energy through the leader to have even a hope of success, and even then more are necessary because servants of the Wyrm almost invariably attempt to disrupt the rite. When the Caern of the Buried Heart was created by the Uktena, over three quarters of them were killed by Wyrmfoes.
Rites of Death
The Galliards and Philodox most commonly perform these rites.
Gathering for the Departed - This is a rite for the newly dead, a remembrance, celebration and mourning for the lost. There are variations of this rite for different tribes.
Rite of the Winter Wolf - This solemn and bleak rite is performed by and for a Garou who is too wounded or aged to fight with his tribe. At the end of the rite, the Garou who is the subject of the rite commits suicide, either by wandering into the wilderness or by some quicker means.
Mystic Rites
These rites are most commonly performed by the Theurges, though there are many mystics amongst the Uktena and Stargazers.
Baptism of Fire - Performed on Garou children within a moon of their birth, this rite places a spiritual brand on the child that enables them to be traced and recognized by all Garou, unfortunately even Black Spiral Dancers. The Kin-Fetch spirit watches over the child and alerts the tribe when the child is about to undergo the First Change, though these minor spirits are weak and sometimes lose track of heir charges.
Rite of Binding - This rite binds a spirit to a Garou, making it his servant. This rite can be used to create talens, items of power that can be used once. Most Garou feel that spirits should only be bound when needed, though this point is contested by the mystics of the Uktena tribe.
Rite of Talisman Dedication - This rite allows a Garou to bind objects to her body, allowing these objects to fit the Garou's various forms.
Rite of Becoming - This rite enables a Garou to travel into the Deep Umbra.
Rite of Spirit Awakening - This rite is used to waken a sleeping or inactive spirit, and can be used on mundane items to enliven an object's spirit and give it an Umbral presence.
Rite of Summoning - A spirit can be called with this rite, though more powerful spirits will resist the call more strongly. The more the Garou knows about the spirit being summoned, the easier this rite is to be performed.
Rite of the Fetish - This rite allows a Garou to create a fetish, an object of power with a spirit permanently bound to it. The fetish must be properly prepared before the rite can be performed - the gathering and preparation of a powerful fetish may be the subject of more tales than the fetish itself.
Rite of the Totem - This rite binds a totem spirit to a group of Garou and is often performed during the formation of a pack after the Rite of the Pack.
Rite of Release - This Rite is performed when a pack is disbanded, to recognize the contributions of the pack's totem spirit and free it (and the pack) for other duties. This Rite is always performed at a moot.
Punishment RitesThese rites are most commonly performed by the Philodox, though other Garou leaders may know them. The Garou punished by these Rites almost always lose Renown.
Rite of Ostracism - This rite is used for lesser crimes and estranges the punished Garou from her tribe, sept and sometimes even pack. The other Garou will then treat the offender as a nonentity, ignoring her as much as possible. The punishment normally lasts from one phase of the moon to the next, though it can last as long as the sept or tribe leaders desire. At worst, the punishment may be decreed to be permanent.
Voice of the Jackal - This rite is performed when a Garou's behavior has shamed not just herself, but her entire sept or tribe. The punished Garou will speak in an annoyingly shrill and piercing nasal whine until the ritemaster repeals the punishment.
Stone of Scorn - In this rite, a Stone of Scorn is passed to each Garou present at the rite, who tells a mocking or embarrassing tale of the scorned Garou. This rite often lasts all night, with successive stories becoming more and more outrageous and derogatory. Once the rite ends, so does the punishment, though the Renown is lost until the Garou performs an honorable deed.
The Hunt - The Hunt is called against Garou who have committed capital crimes, yet still retain a vestige of honor. The Garou participating in the Hunt simply hunt down the criminal and kill him. There is no quarter given, although (for what it's worth) death exculpates the condemned Garou. Many tragic stories tell of Garou forced to choose between violating their word and committing a grave crime. Such Garou, so the stories go, chose to honor their word and were Hunted, but displayed such valor that they gained much posthumous Renown.
Rending of the Veil - This rite is used to punish a human who greatly offends the Garou, by dropping the Veil for a night, thereby forcing the Garou to see and remember the Garou for the duration of an all-night hunt.
Gaia's Vengeful Teeth - Reserved for traitors to the Garou, this rite transforms whatever part of the Gaia the punished Garou touches into razor-sharp silver, after which the traitor is chased like a dog by the Garou until she dies. The offender's name is then stricken from all histories and will be spoken only as a curse from that moment forward.
Rites of Renown
These rites are most commonly performed by the Galliards and Philodox.
Rite of Accomplishment - This rite is used to honor a Garou and recognize Renown due to her.
Rite of Passage - This rite is a dangerous quest meant to prove a cub's courage, honor and wisdom. Few cubs undergo this rite alone, they are often joined by their pack to be. Once the quest is finished, the cubs now hold the rank of cliath and are treated thenceforth as full-fledged Garou.
Rite of the Pack - This rite is also a quest, used by Garou to bond a pack together. This rite may be performed more than once during the life of a pack, as new members enter the pack.
Rite of Allegiance - This rite is a dedication of the pack members to one another that is performed at a moot when a pack forms and each time new members are added.
Rite of Wounding - This rite celebrates the first battle wound received by a Garou.
Rites of SeasonsAt each solstice and equinox a rite is performed to recognize the change of seasons.Minor RitesThese rites are used by various Garou as part of their daily rituals, reaffirming their connection to Gaia, their totem spirit, and each other.
Bone Rhythms - This rite is performed in homage to the Garou's totem spirit, and shows respect for all spirits.
Breath of Gaia - The Garou performing this rite breathes deeply of Gaia's air, thereby clearing his mind of all things save her love of Gaia and enabling him to be more successful at attempts to divine or heal.
Greet the Moon - This rite is an exuberant paean to Luna at a given phase of the moon, and increases respect amongst the Garou of the corresponding auspice.
Greet the Sun - This rite is performed at sunrise, and enables the Garou to better sense the presence of the Wyrm.
Hunting Prayer - This rite has many forms, but always involves pausing before the start of a hunt to praise Gaia and all her creatures.
Prayer for the Prey - A specific form of the Rite of Contrition, this rite involves the Garou thanking the spirit of the prey just after making a kill for giving its own life that the Garou might survive. Performing this rite is a sign of respect to Gaia, her children, and life itself.