Renown

Renown amongst the Garou is a marker of cultural esteem, measuring how well a Garou lives up to what is expected of him in Garou culture. Renown is awarded in three specific areas:

Glory - Physical prowess, dangerous risk-taking, and combat victories

Honor - Sense of duty, ethics and morals, and personal honor

Wisdom - Erudition, patience, cunning, insight and spiritual connection

 

Auspice heavily colors Renown, for a Garou's Auspice is largely determines his role in society and Renown is an indicator of how well the Garou is living up to that role. How far a Garou rises in society depends to some degree on how well she respects and fulfills the demand of that role. Therefore, different auspices will seek to earn different forms of renown.

Ragabash - The tricksters will find Renown where they can. The lack of respect many Garou have for the Ragabash makes it difficult for them to earn Renown.

Theurges - The wise ones of course seek wisdom, secondarily glory as their knowledge leads to victory in action.

Philodox - The judges have a hard road to climb as they seek honor and wisdom.

Galliards - The moon dancers seek glory and wisdom through their deeds and tales. As they become known, honor becomes important as a sign of respect.

Ahrouns - Glory and honor are important to the warriors, although as they rise wisdom is valued as well.

 

As a Garou gains Renown, he will rise in Rank. More than any other trait, Rank measures the status and respect accorded to Garou by their peers. The greatest secrets of the tribes are only taught to those Garou who have proven themselves, and the best way to do this is by gaining Rank, though few are able to survive long enough to achieve the higher Ranks.

Types of Renown

Glory

The creed of Glory:I shall be valorousI shall be dependableI shall be generousI shall protect the weakI shall slay the WyrmOne can obtain Glory renown from the following actions:

 

Surviving an incapacitating wound

Gaining a Battle Scar

Surviving a toxic waste attack

Attacking a minion of the Wyrm without regard for personal safety

Defeating a minion of the Wyrm

Traveling beyond the Near Umbra to another Realm and surviving

Performing or participating in a Rite of Caern Building

Owning a klaive (this is awarded once, after three moons of use)

Helping to prevent the caern from being overrun by the Wyrm

Dying while defending a caern (posthumous).

Without any assistance, preventing the Wyrm from overtaking the caern (a Garou can receive more than one Glory Trait for this action)

Accepting a sept position

Telling a good story at a moot

 

One can lose Glory renown from the following scandalous actions:

Cowering from a foe

Begging a minion of the Wyrm for your life

Participating in a failed Great Hunt

Suffering the Rite of Ostracism

Not preventing a caern from being overrun by the Wyrm

Refusing a sept position

Suffering from a fox frenzy (running in fear)

Honor

The creed of Honor:I shall be respectfulI shall be loyalI shall be justI shall live by my wordI shall accept all fair challengesOne can obtain Honor renown from the following actions:

 

Showing restraint in the face of certain death

Performing a Moot Rite

Performing a Rite of Passage

Performing a Rite of Caern Building

Performing a Punishment Rite

Owning a klaive (awarded once, only after three moons of use)

Helping to guard a caern, even when you'd rather be somewhere else

Helping to prevent a caern from being overrun by the Wyrm

Teaching another Garou a valuable lesson

Reciting part of the Silver Record at a moot

Gaining the position of Pack Leader (awarded once)

Serving in a sept position faithfully for one year

Upholding the Litany during a controversial issue

Mediating a dispute fairly and impartially

Consistently keeping your promises

Being truthful in the face of adversity

Telling an epic story at a moot

Showing mercy to a wayward Garou

Protecting a helpless human or wolf

Supporting a person being accused of a crime (who is later proven innocent)

Making sacrifices to protect the Veil

Repairing the Veil

Parenting a Garou

 

One can lose Honor renown from the following scandalous actions:

Falsely accusing anyone of being of the Wyrm

Refusing to perform a Moot Rite

Suffering the Stone of Scorn

Suffering the Rite of Ostracism

Accidentally breaking or losing a klaive

Not staying on watch at a caern when a more tempting activity presents itself

Refusing to help guard a caern

Not preventing a caern from being overrun by the Wyrm

Refusing any sept position

Challenging someone too far above or below your own Rank

Mediating a dispute unfairly

Failing to keep your promises

Being deceptive

Speaking poorly of the Garou as a whole

Speaking poorly of ones tribe, auspice or pack

"Crying Wolf" (i.e., summoning the Ahroun of a sept when there is no real danger present)

Not protecting a helpless Garou

Not protecting a helpless wolf or human

Not protecting a cub

Performing heinous acts while in the Thrall of the Wyrm

Abandoning your pack in a time of need

Harming/rending the Veil

Becoming involved in a romantic relationship with another Garou

Parenting a Metis

Wisdom

The creed of Wisdom:I shall be calmI shall be prudentI shall be temperateI shall be mercifulI shall think before I act and listen before I thinkOne can obtain Wisdom renown from the following actions:

 

Besting someone (even a spirit) in a riddle contest

Showing restraint in the face of certain death

Ending a threat without serious harm to any Garou

Revealing with certain proof that a Kinfolk or Garou is of the Wyrm

Purifying a Wyrm-tainted object, person or place

Successfully completing a spirit quest in the Umbra

Giving a prophetic warning that later comes true

Discovering ancient Garou Lore

Performing a Rite of Caern Building

Discovering/creating a new rite

Discovering/creating a new Gift

Creating a fetish

Sacrificing a fetish for the good of the sept or tribe

Keeping a caern safe through trickery or imagination

Teaching another Garou a valuable lesson

Upholding the Litany

Consistently giving good advice

Healing a fellow Garou (non-pack member) self-lessly

 

One can lose Wisdom renown from the following actions:

Attacking a much more powerful force without aid

Falsely accusing another of being "of the Wyrm"

Failing to complete a spirit quest in the Umbra

Giving a prophetic warning that does not come true

Giggling, joking or otherwise being disrespectful during a rite (leeway is given on this one for a Ragabash)

For a homid, ignoring ones wolf nature for too long

For a metis, attempting to hide one's deformity

Living alone or away from your pack

Breaking the Litany

Consistently giving bad advice

Having trickery backfire

Injuring a fellow Garou during a frenzy

Having poor relations with nearby Kinfolk

Becoming involved in a romantic relationship with another Garou

Parenting a Metis

Not protecting a cub

Awarding Renown

As Renown is a public measure of respect for a Garou, it can only be awarded (or removed) in public settings. There are several ways to gain (and lose) Renown:

 

The most common way for Garou to earn Renown is to tell the tale of their worthy deeds in the Stories and Songs portion of a moot, or have someone else tell the tale (such as a Galliard, they are quite skilled at it). General acclaim for the actions of the Garou in the tale is sufficient to earn them Renown - this is part of why Galliards are so important to earning Renown, for they can often tell the tale better than a Garou of another auspice could. Telling the tale poorly can cause loss of Renown, as can telling a tale that contains scandalous actions by the Garou. During the Stories and Songs portion of the moot, the elder

 

Galliard present has the final say on what Renown is awarded or removed.

The elder of an auspice can award or take away Renown from the Garou of her auspice by fiat, though again this must be announced at a moot. The elder can also veto any other Renown awards being made to a Garou of her auspice.

 

During the Cracking the Bone portion of a moot, any Ragabash may raise a scandal against another Garou, though there must be some proof that is accepted by the Truthcatcher - once accepted the subject(s) of the scandal lose Renown.

 

Finally, a Philodox asked for judgment in a dispute could as part of the judgment determine that one or more of the parties in the dispute must lose Renown or even Rank.

Renown is shared by Garou. Should a group of Garou strongly act to uphold the Litany during a time of crisis, they would all receive Honor for their actions. Should a couple of young Garou play a trick that backfires badly, they'd both lose Wisdom for their actions. In addition, Garou are expected to perform ever-more Glorious, Honorable, and Wise deeds. The same action performed over and over again will not gain a Garou more Renown. For example, defeating your first Bane is worth some Glory, but to earn additional Glory from the killing of Banes you must seek out stronger opponents. Thus the Garou strengthen themselves, ever-seeking greater challenges.