Silver Fangs

Tribal Totem

Falcon

The Silver Fangs are the royalty of the Garou Nation, known for their beauty, courage, and utter dedication to Gaia. They raised the first known Caern, lead the Tribes to fulfill Gaia's will in the Impergium, and guided the Garou Nation with generations of kings and queens. They traces their bloodline back to the Progenitor Wolf, a geneology of the noblest human blood and the finest wolf ancestors. Through the ages, they have been at the forefront of the war, the proudest and most magnificent of Garou. To hear the Silver Fangs tell it, that is still true.
Other Tribes have their doubts, though. Some charge that the Silver Fangs obsession with pure blood has brought them to inbreeding, and their once clear minds have grown feeble and clouded through the generations. Weak kings demand respect for the deeds of their ancestors, not their own. Mad leaders care more for the details of their courtly traditions than for the war against the Wyrm. Far too many fall to Harano for them to be considered a healthy Tribe.
Both viewpoints have some truth to them. The Silver Fangs do indeed descend from great heroes, and they have also suffered from their preference for aristocratic Kinfolk over healthy and intelligent kin. Many are just as bad as their critics claim, but some still shine with the light of old heroism. From their First Change, the Silver Fangs learn that they are meant to rule; not that it is their destiny or their right, but it is their purpose. The best of them interpret this mandate as a form of Noblesse Oblige: that they must lead by example in peace and war. The worst sieze upon it as a justification for tyranny. Their aristocratic families raise their children with a sense of being "above the rest." Their lupus kin, of course, have no real sense of nobility, per say. But the Fangs protect these kin with the fullness of their resources, so many Silver Fang lupus still end up enjoying a more privileged youth than the wolf born of other Tribes.

History

As with many tribal histories, it is difficult to separate fact from myth. Silver Fang myths give many different reasons for their ascendancy over the other Tribes, some saying that Wolf himself rescued Gaia from death and was rewarded by their signature ivory coat, and others saying that Gaia, after creating the first Garou, designated the leaders with a white coat. Regardless, all can agree that the Alpha of the first pack of Garou created by Gaia was the first Silver Fang.
The Silver Fangs have been active in human politics for many centuries, having learned of kingship and heredity from them millennia before. They were present in the royal families of Rome and proto-Europe, often battling vampires for control of nations and the Glass Walkers for dominance of the cities. As the centuries passed, they and their Kinfolk married into Europe's royal and noble houses, guaranteeing their tribe a ready position to work at turning kingdoms and empires to their desires.

Organization

Originally, the Tribe was divided into thirteen Houses that formed back in the Russian Tundra at the dawn of time, each of which from a mighty ancestor. It often took many years for each house to declare itself, under the leadership of a descendant of one of the original thirteen wolves. These were the core alphas of the Tribe long ago, the first Garou ordained as Those Who Lead. Therefore, each House has a single king or queen, who is the ruler of that House’s territory.
However, only seven of the Houses remain. Each Silver Fang belongs to one of these Houses, and most join one of the two lodges after they have completed their Rite of Passage. The King or Queen of the House is the ruler of that House’s territory, who in turn answers to the High King (if there's one who's worthy of the Silver Crown). Each King is served by various Lords, who rule other septs and are usually elders in their own right or heirs to the throne. There are also stewards, who aid them coordinating packs in their territory. Of course, each pack has its own leader, who may or may not bear an additional title of some sort.
Silver Fang Moots are remarkably convoluted, hinging on baroque rituals of etiquette that would scarcely be tolerated by any other Tribe. The role of the Silver Fangs is deeply controversial. Many garou uphold tradition by acknowledging the Fangs as still worthy of leadership. Others treat them as figureheads to be openly respected and then quietly ignored when necessary. Others still chafe to be rid of them (the Shadow Lords most of all).

Lodges

Serving as an official declaration of focus and intent, every Silver Fang is expected to choose one of the two Lodges soon after their First Change. Some may delay the decision or refuse to ever make it, but such a refusal hampers progress in Rank and Tribal positions. If they cannot prove their commitment to a Lodge, they cannot be trusted with the commitments of a Sept post or be responsible for a role in the Tribe. (Lodges have access to Gifts which require membership to learn. For Lodge of the Moon, a character must also choose "Waxing" or "Waning" cycle, and may only learn the Gifts of that cycle.)

• Lodge of the Moon: The first Fang Lodge created to win back the love of Luna and gain her forgiveness for the Tribe's alligiance to Helios. The Moon Lodge focuses prodominently on the esoteric: spiritual and mystical matters, emotions, and the morale of its King's subjects. Insight and intuition are the tools of this Lodge, and while most of its members are Homid, the majority of the Tribe's Lupus are loyal to the Lodge of the Moon.

• Lodge of the Sun: Created in response to the Lodge of the Moon, the Lodge of the Sun concerns itself with the material world: history and current affairs, inter-Sept and inter-Tribal relations, tracking the movements of the enemy, and so on. Its methods are order and reason, and the Lodge is dominated by Homids.

Houses

(Note: Houses have Gifts specific to them which require membership to learn. Leaving a House for any reason removes access to those Gifts.)

Clan Crescent Moon

Totem: Buzzard
Description: Steeped in ancient lore, many of Clan Crescent Moon can trace their lineages almost back to the First Wolf, thanks in part to their access to some of the known world's oldest and most majestic Caerns. Their bloodlines are strikingly pure, while many among them are masters of lore, there are still mighty warriors among them.

House Wyrmfoe

Totem: Eagle
Description: One of the most progressive Houses, they are keen young heroes, eager to take the fight to the Wyrm. They are often received better by members of other Tribes as they do not necessarily value blood purity over capability.

House Gleaming Eye

Totem: Hawk
Description: Cunning Silver Fangs, standing stalwart against incursions by the Wyrm and aggressive in rooting it out when it shows its head.

House Blood-Red Crest

Totem: Merlin
Description: With the least numbers of any House, they have a reputation for demonstrating the indomitable will and optimism of their totem. They might be the smallest hawk in the fight, but they are still in the fight.

House Wise Heart

Totem: Peregrine Falcon
Description: The strangest, most mystically inclined of the Houses, they have great storehouses of lore. If they would share it with the rest of the world, there is no doubt it would benefit the Tribe greatly.

House Unbreakable Hearth

Totem: Harrier
Description: The first of the Houses to base itself almost entirely within cities, closer to their Kinfolk. The House also prides itself on its long tradition of peacemaking with the others Tribes.

House Austere Howl

Totem: Osprey
Description: Renowned for its rare good relations with the Fianna and the Get of Fenris, and their work towards a fragile peace between the three Tribes against the minions of the Wyrm within the British Isles.

Camps

Camps represent special interests within the Tribe, for the most part. Some camps are badges of honor, epitomizing the tenets of Honor, Glory or Wisdom that the Nation prizes so highly. Others are forbidden, secret sects and societies practicing Gifts and Rites that border on blasphemy taught to them by forgotten and often horrific spirits that hide deep in the Umbra.
Officially, the Silver Fangs have no Camps; their dogma is to present a united front to all the "lesser tribes." Behind the scenes, however, they are as schismatic as any other group of Garou; even royalty has factions, and the Silver Fangs are no exception. While mostly united in their desire to remain "top dogs", the tribe is divided on how to go about it. Fang camps are secretive groups whose members would likely be shamed, punished, or worse if their association with the camp was known. The following camps are the most polarized factions within the Silver Fangs:

• Grey Raptors: Society of Silver Fangs who strike to punish those who insult or ignore their Tribe's ancient right to rule. The Raptors keep their identities a secret, but their actions are overt. Terror and torture are their bread and butter in their attempt to enforce ancient oaths of fealty that few Garou outside of the Fangs remember or recognize.

• Ivory Priesthood: It is said that when the First Wolf died to save Gaia, it learned the "secret of death." The Ivory Priesthood is a secret society of Fang Theurges who, after undergoing a series of spiritual trials and tests, begin learning these same secrets about what lies beyond the shroud of death.

• Masters of the Seal: No child of Falcon would ever admit to being a member of this camp and to accuse one of it would result in a demand for honorable challenge. The reason is simple: Masters of the Seal are thieves, one and all, stealing secrets from both the spirits and other Tribes. While they keep their identities secret, they divulge what they have learned to others within the Tribe who can use the information to best promote the Fangs' communal interests.

• Renewal: There are rivals to the power of the Silver Fangs, even within the halls of the White Wolves. The secret society called Renewal dares to descent from Tribal orthodoxy and seeks to replace the old, inbred, senile leaders with fresh and sane ones. They do not want the Silver Fangs as a Tribe to reliquish power over the other Tribes, they meerly believe that change from within must happen. The have recently made overtures to the Stargazer camp called the Inner Path, and are exploring ways the two groups can work together.

Tribal Culture

The Silver Fangs are very concerned with the geneology of their Kinfolk, keeping extensive records about the bloodlines of their relatives. Their human kin come from noble blood, not necessarily wealth; their wolf kin have no equivalent, but the Fangs still carefully protect their wolf cousins on tribal lands. While originally from Russia, their Septs can be found around the world in the most desireable locations, often at the expense of other Tribes and Fera.

Homids

Homids among the Silver Fangs are well educated, often proven to be superior scholastics from an earlier age. They are driven to succeed, both by lineage and through natural inclination, and often aspire to leadership positions in whatever field they choose. Many of them are "alpha personalities" with a natural inclination to compete. They are also fiercely protective of those who serve them willingly, guarding their perceived lessers with a loyalty worthy of kings and queens.

Lupus

Lupus Silver Fangs are typically larger than most wolves displaying a regal demeanor and physical strength that can naturally cow lesser wolves. They are natural tacticians and leaders, and even when not alpha among their fellows tend to be strong voices for pack cohesion and strength. They cannot masquerade as dogs by any means, they are instantly recognizeable as wolves by even an uneducated viewer.

Metis

Silver Fang Metis are relatively unknown throughout the Tribe. Reviled and scorned, the Tribe refuses to accept the exceedingly rare case. A true Silver Fang would never accept a metis as their equal nor call one family. At best, the Tribe sees metis as expendable tools: they should be utilized in the service of Gaia until such a time as they expire.

Political Culture

Although the tribe (according to their own legends) has the divine mandate to rule their brethren, many Silver Fangs have found their attitudes often met with ridicule and scorn by the other Tribes, who refer to them as the "mad kings" (though never within earshot).

Religious Culture

The Silver Fangs have ties to both Celestines, as their Totem ties them to Helios and their nature to Luna. They constantly have to mediate between both extremes in order to find equilibrium and to rule true.

Tribal Weakness

Derangement: Must choose a derangement during character creation. (Requires Storyteller approval)
Backgrounds: Required to take at least Pure Breed 3 during character creation.

Physical Characteristics

Silver Fangs are magnificent pale wolves with bright eyes and sleek fur crowned by a regal ruff around the beast's neck. They are uncommonly large with graceful movements and an air of determination.